Save Benicia SRA

Brianna from the Benicia Middle School sent the following e-mail on 2/11/2008:

Hi, my name is Brianna ***, and I am in the eighth grade at Benicia Middle School. I think it is so wrong that they are trying to do. I would like to do what I can to help. If you would like, I can pitch some ideas to the National Junior Honor Society at our school. They deal with all the community service fundraisers and issue awareness at our school. I think that what you people are doing is so great. Please tell me if there is anything I can do to help. You can email me at ***.

Thank you, Brianna.

Response:

Hi Brianna,

Thank you for writing me. Thank you for your interest. And Thank You for trying to help Save Benicia State Recreation Area (SRA) from being closed.

My name is Gene Doherty, a Benicia resident, and volunteer at the Forrest Deaner Native Plant Botanic Garden. I am deeply concerned with the potential closure of the Benicia State Recreation Area because of the adverse affect it would have both on the Garden and our community (because many of us use the Park for exercise). Ultimately my publication of the www.SaveBeniciaSRA.org website has been to gather the facts about the Park and raise public awareness to avert the potential closure. I believe it is a mistake that the Benicia State Recreation Area is on the list of Park closures, and that if the politicians in Sacramento know the value we place on the Park then they can find an alternative solution that can keep the Park open. The Park does not need to be closed in order for the California State Budget to become balanced, there are other ways that the politicians can use to resolve the state budget crisis.

In high school I was a member of the National Honor Society, and I am proud of you for taking the initiative on a public cause / issue. To Save the Benicia SRA from closure will require that Governor Schwarzenegger and the State Legislatures know that we, the citizens of Benicia, do not accept the prospect of the Park being closed. How we do this is by contacting them directly; by either sending e-mails, calling them, writing letters, or visiting them in the State Capitol. The more people that voice their concerns and comments in favor of the Benicia SRA remaining open, the more likely it will be that they find an alternative solution and allow the Benicia State Recreation Area to remain open. In politics this is called the "squeaky wheel", based on an old saying that the squeaky wheel gets the oil (or grease). If we make enough noise about not wanting the Park to be closed, then it is likely that they will concentrate of finding a solution to keep the Park open.

As a member of the Benicia Middle School, you and your classmates have a VOICE that can speak louder than you may know. As a society, what we value most is you, our next generation. You are our hopes and dreams for a better future. When you decide to speak about how the future looks from your perspective, then we often (though unfortunately not always) listen.

What you, the National Junior Honor Society at your school, and your classmates can do to to stop the Benicia SRA from being closed is 1) learn about the issue, 2) understand the ramifications of the decisions to be made, and 3) act on your convictions (take action).

1) Learn about the issue. To have a strong conviction about an issue it is very important to understand all aspects of the issue. My strong conviction has lead me to create the website and to give presentations to city councils and organizations. Because not everyone I speak to, or you will speak to, has the same conviction, we may get challenged about the facts. If you and I and your classmates don't know the facts then it becomes difficult for us to stand by our convictions. It becomes difficult to counter their arguments. So step number 1 is to learn all you can about the issue.

I am doing all I can to learn the facts and include them on the www.SaveBeniciaSRA.org website. As I learn new things, I am / will constantly be updating the website with the latest information. As you and your classmates decide to learn about the Park closure issue, I hope you will read and revisit the website. But I also hope you will research the issue further on the Internet and by asking me, your parents, your local politicians and your State Legislatures any questions you may have. Our Benicia State Legislatures are Senator Patricia Wiggins and Assembly Member Lois Wolk, their contact information is on the website. As you find out information I would be honored if you would share it with me so that I could include it on the website.

Currently on the website is a "Response to the Fact Sheet" that I have created as the facts that I know so far. Please feel free to print it out and share it with your classmates. Also print out the original "Fact Sheet" that the California Department of Parks and Recreation created (also on the website) which defines why they included the Benicia State Recreation Area on the park closure list in the first place. Between these two documents I hope that you will be able to understand the issue from my perspective and the perspective of the California Department of Parks and Recreation.

If you and your schools National Junior Honor Society, or your whole school, would like to have me share my perspective about this issue and give a presentation, I would be honored. Discuss this with your parents and classmates first and then with your Faculty Advisor of the National Junior Honor Society. Eventually your principal will need to agree to such a presentation if I gave it at the school. If you / we are going to be effective in stopping the Park from being closed we probably have until April1 to express to the State Legislatures our concerns on this issue.

2) Understand the ramifications. Currently the California State Government is experiencing a budget crisis, in that they have promised to pay out more money than they are collecting (the government collects money as taxes and fees). They have two options, to reduce what they promise to pay out, or to borrow money to pay what they promise, but it will eventually cost us more money because of interest on the borrowed money. Governor Schwarzenegger has chosen to offer a budget proposal that reduces what they promise to pay rather than borrow more money. This is called a balanced budget, and it is what we as a society should strive for. I am happy that he has chosen this approach, the President of the United States has currently chosen the opposite approach and will borrow more money to pay what he promises, increasing the public debt.

When the government borrows money it costs taxpayers (everyone) more to pay for the same services because of interest that must be paid on the borrowed money. Eventually if they borrow a great deal of money the taxpayers will have to pay over a longer period of time and thus they / we are paying even more money in interest. This can go on for a while but eventually the people and countries that loan us the money will stop loaning it or they will charge even more money in interest. Currently California and the Federal governments have already borrowed so much money, that you will likely be paying for it, as a taxpayer, even after you graduate from college. Please note that this was a simple observation of economics, it is really far more complicated, and you are likely to learn more about in high school and college.

Here is why YOUR VOICE is important. If California borrows money to keep the Benicia SRA open, then you and your classmates (along with the rest of us) will still be paying taxes in the future to cover the expenses of keeping it open now. It seems like a good choice, you will eventually learn this when you are issued your first "credit card", but it has a problem. When you make money from having a job, or as California makes money collecting taxes, you only make a certain amount within a certain period of time (an annual salary or annual tax revenue). If you have to pay more in interest on the money you have borrowed (or on credit cards) then you will have less to spend on new things. Eventually, if you borrow too much money, then you will have no money left to spend on new things.

So we try to find a balance between borrowing and new spending. And this is what the Governor proposed. But the story doesn't end yet.

Sometimes we choose to borrow because we believe that the current benefit will be greater than the future expenses of paying more for it. Take education for example. As a society we believe that your education is important. We want to give you the opportunity to become a productive member of society and thus to become a taxpayer willing to pay for the next generations education. The trouble is that some people did not receive a good education in the past and thus have not benefited from being a member of a strong society, or they simply do not value what it can do now for you and your generation. So at the same time that we want to fight to Save the Benicia SRA from being closed, we need to fight to make sure that your educational options do not become limited. Even though the Governors proposal attempts to preserve funding for your education, there is concern that it will affect your education because the population is increasing without a similar increase in educational expenses and the education system has already been underfunded for many years.

Hopefully you can see that it is not a simple issue, there are no simple solutions.

The business of Government is really to find the balance between what we as taxpayers can afford to pay and what we expect from our Government. As taxpayers it is up to us to learn the real facts about the issues. As a Benicia Middle School student I do not know what would be in your best interest if you had to choose between saving a Park and saving your future educational options.

Unless...

3) You act on your convictions.

Education is about teaching you, all of us, about the society and the world we live in. If you, your school's National Junior Honor Society, and classmates feel convinced that stopping the Benicia SRA from being closed is a benefit to you and us in Benicia. Then use it as a learning experience on how California State Government functions. Learn how your voice can make a difference.

As you learn about the issue from reading the website and other research you may do, you may recognize a value that the Benicia SRA has in your life and the life of our community. If so then act on it. In your e-mail you asked if I had any ideas, here are a few ideas. Please feel free to perform or not perform any of them (I am here to support you in whatever you choose to act upon).

3a) Write a personal story about the Benicia SRA or the Forrest Deaner Native Plant Botanic Garden. What experiences have you had in the Park or Garden? If it remains open, what would you like to use the Park for in the future? I am starting to collect stories to add to the website, Leah told me about the day her father died and she took a long walk through the Park to remember the times they shared together.

If writing is not your strength, then how about pictures of the Park, or a video, or other art?

Mail or e-mail them to Governor Schwarzenegger, Senator Wiggins and Assembly Member Wolk (see the website for addresses). I would be honored to also add them to the website if you send them to me at SaveBeniciaSRA@comcast.net

3b) Talk about it with others. Have them send in stories and letters to the Governor and State Legislators. Letting people know about the issue and requesting that they take action is why I built the website. You and your classmates can help publicize the issue and get more people to write in or call.

On the website, under Documents I have included several documents and pictures that can be printed out and given to people to spark their interest. Please feel free to use whatever I have on the website, or create your own.

3c) Conduct a survey of the people using the Benicia SRA.

One of published facts is that annually there are 22,438 paid visitors and 224,387 free visitors to the Benicia SRA. The free visitors represents the paid visitors by a factor of 10, meaning that for every 1 paid visitor there are 10 free visitors. This factor of 10 is unlike any other State Park statistic and to some of us seems like a guess, which means that the free visitors could be more or less than indicated. It would be good if we could confirm this number.

What a survey would require is that a group of you (a faculty member or I could assist) go to the Park for a set period of time and count every person who comes to visit. What I would recommend is that for two hours on a Saturday morning (because it is the busiest time) that you station yourselves at the gate just inside the parking lot at the Columbus Parkway entrance (bring a chair or two) and ask everyone going into the Park a few questions (please stay safely off the road). If they are in a car then just count the people you can see. If you get plenty of people to help then maybe also station a group by the Military West and / or the Glen Cove entrances.

Use the following as a survey:

Names of all people conducting the survey:
Date of survey:
Starting Time of survey:
Ending Time of survey:
Location:
Weather condition:

Count the number of people you see in cars/trucks.
Count the number of people you see on bikes.
Count the number of people you see walking (and babies in baby carriages).
Count the number of people you see in wheelchairs.
Keep a total count of the number of people who answer these survey questions you ask (not all will have time to answer, that's okay):

a) Do you live in Benicia or Vallejo? Yes or No (count number of each)
b) Do you live in Solano County? Yes or No (count number of each)
c) Did you drive and park INSIDE the Park today? Yes or No (count number of each)
d) If yes to c) then did you pay the $4 parking fee today? Yes or No or have a Pass (count number of each if they answered yes to c)
e) Did you know that the Park may be closed because of the State budget crisis? Yes or No (count number of each, if they answered no then share the facts with them)

If your team can conduct the survey more often, please feel free to do it whenever possible, record the statistics and send them to me. Your math teacher(s) can also help you in understanding the data you collect and even provide so reasoning to the questions I came up with. Also feel fee to ask other questions if you want.

3d) Next, we are in the process of getting the word out to the public. If you know of an opportunity where we can set up a table and distribute information then please let us know.

Also, on Saturday and Sunday, March 15 and 16 we will have a table at the Benicia in Bloom, if you and or your classmates would want to join us at the table for an hour we would love to have you. We will be passing out information to the public. At the beginning of March we will know where our table will be located and I will publish it on the website. Or you can e-mail me if you are interested. Just select a time from 10:00am to 6:00pm on either day and just drop by the table, we will have everything there.

3e) Lastly, visit the Park and the Botanic Garden. Encourage others to do so as well. Ultimately the reason we have parks is for people to exercise and use them, create their own memories in them. We wouldn't have to save the parks if no one visits them. If you feel particularly inclined you can volunteer to help in the Garden any / every Saturday from 9:30am to 11:30am. We do weeding, mulching and planting depending on that days need.

Briana,

Again Thank You for your interest. We would be very happy to have you and your classmates assist in any and every way you can. The future of the Benicia SRA is very much your future as much as ours. Working together we have a very good chance of keeping the Park open, but ultimately it comes down to getting more people to contact the Governor and State Legislators and requesting that the Benicia SRA remain open.

Norma Deaner, the Garden is named after her husband Forrest, and I are working together on the SaveBeniciaSRA campaign. Either of us can assist you if you have questions or want to plan one of these actions. Here is our contact information:

Gene Doherty SaveBeniciaSRA@comcast.net

Regards,
Gene